Citation

Status Report 2017; 52(4).

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This article reports on a recent survey conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) that asked drivers about their use of lane maintenance systems, a type of crash avoidance feature. Readers are referred to an earlier study from IIHS that estimated lane departure warnings could be relevant to 23% of fatal crashes. However, many drivers shut off the lane maintenance warning systems because they find them annoying. In contrast, most vehicle owners with crash avoidance systems in place leave the forward collision warning systems turned on. In this new study, of 983 vehicles observed, 51% had their lane maintenance systems turned on while other types of crash avoidance systems came in at use rates of 90% or higher. The author discusses the impact of different styles of warning systems (e.g., tactile versus auditory) and the relationship of driver impairment (incapacitation) and resulting inability to respond to a lane departure warning. The link to the full research study is provided.

Keywords

Behavior; Drivers; Crash avoidance systems; Lane changing; Warning signals; Audible warning devices in vehicles; Impaired drivers; Lane occupancy; Tactile perception